But as Steve Aschburner noted earlier today at NBA.com, the league had never seen anything quite like the show Ice and Skywalker put on to finish the ’78 campaign.

Thompson, then a star for Denver, entered his final game trailing Gervin by 0.2 points, 26.6 to 26.8. With Gervin slated to play later that evening in New Orleans, he knew he’d need a big game against Detroit to not only surpass the leader but build a cushion.

Thompson responded to the challenge with one of the gaudiest scoring performances in NBA history with a record 32 points in the first quarter, 53 through halftime and 73 at the final buzzer, then the third-highest total in league annals. Thompson’s average sat at 27.15 when he was finished, at which point Gervin needed 58 to recapture the crown.

I was asleep in my hotel room when a reporter called and said, ‘Ice, Thompson scored 73.’ I said, ‘Well, that’s it,’ and I hung up and went back to sleep. Down in the lobby later, some of the guys on the Spurs said, ‘Ice, we’re going to help you.’ My guys loved me.

Despite missing his first six shots, Gervin would finish with 63 points in 33 minutes, including 33 in the second quarter to break the record Thompson set only hours earlier. His average ended up at 27.22 in what remains the tightest scoring race in NBA history.

Talking about the feat recently with Bill Simmons, Gervin said he now regrets not playing more minutes — and hence, taking more shots — in that game. But it was still good enough to secure the first of the Iceman’s franchise-record four scoring championships.